March 28, 2015 Asmita Aggarwal

Blade Runner

Sequins and sports make a heady combo as Namrata courts brocade, dori work and felt this aut-winter 2015

By Asmita Aggarwal

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Real success in actuality lies in not pleasing everyone, but making sure you are happy, so Namrata Joshipura, who has completed 15 years in fashion, let her brand identity go the sensual way rather than become uber sexual. Even though her repertoire often has slinky sequinned gowns and hot shorts, an affair which started with bling and continued to remain in love, for almost a decade now, she does it somewhat cerebrally. “Sequins are a part of my brand’s identity and I know in India, many serious designers stay away from it, I kind of wanted to challenge the set norms of what is traditionally considered, flippant,” she smiles. Sequins have remained a constant companion, it adds a bit of ‘fun’ as Namrata will tell you, and in the same breath that fashion is not to be taken seriously, and also that she is not giving up on shimmer just yet.

Sporty chic being Namrata’s ideology, she acknowledges the fact that ‘you are as good as your last show’ and to continue your ascend into the design landscape, innovation is the key. “So I take the proportion and shape route to increasing my client base. I don’t make performance wear, but it is hugely derived from that philosophy; they reflect the person that I am,” she confides.

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Embroidery and embellishment is somewhat omnipresent in her aut-winter line ‘Night Goddess’, it is a bit dark, in an intense sort of way, she confides, a side we all have, but there is a restraint sparkle in there too. “This time the finale outfit was done in brocade so textiles where they fit, I use. The sectors I would like to work with are Gujarat (Rabari tribe), in Kutch, Jamdani from Bengal and brocades of Beneras,” she adds. She may include neoprene, but in reality, Namrata will only wear a traditional textile handloom, and never an embroidered crepe. “Most of my gowns and dresses, are made of 100 per cent silk as it falls and drapes well, so there is some part of the line which is organic and pushes the au naturel doctrine,” she adds.

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Crafts this aut-winter 2015 have been modernised and reinvented with felt tikkis and dori work finding a place of pride in a line that will see fabric manipulation in its purest form. What’s new are accessories— chokers inspired by the ‘hasli’ that is done with wire. “Here’s my parting shot, there will be no keds or sneakers this time,” she concludes.

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